Stressing the relevance of heritage conservation in an era of smart cities, experts from different domains on Saturday called for treating investments on protection of tangible and intangible heritage as a benefit than a cost.

The multidisciplinary panel was participating in a round table on “How the heritage of a city informs its future and forms the base of its development” organised at the French Institute of Pondicherry (IFP) as part of the ongoing Pondicherry Heritage Festival 2017.

The speakers advocated an increased focus on the human connectivity aspect to heritage conservation and involving people’s participation in any effort in this regard.

Stating that investing on heritage is an asset than a liability, Nicolas Fornage, India Director, French Development Agency (AFD) Heritage, said: “Many municipalities consider it a liability, which is not the right approach. Heritage should be considered an asset and a basis to generate cash flow.”

“The heritage of a place should be seen as an asset to be maintained, used and drawn upon.” As an example, he suggested that the Swadeshi Mill in the city should allow visitors in to see the work that makes it lively.

Raj Poduval, economist, formerly with the UN and the EU, concurred that heritage was an asset for any country looking at economic development because the cultural and heritage tourism provides for revenue-making opportunities.

Speaking about implementing the Puducherry smart city project with emphasis on conserving the heritage, Raphael Gastebois, architecture expert deputed to the Government of Pondichery, said that retrofitting, redevelopment, and green field were the guidelines to make Puducherry a smart city. “Focussing on the Boulevard area, the project proposes to make Puducherry a global tourism destination,” he said.

Politically correct plan

Satya Prakash Varanasi, an architect from Bengaluru, said that a master plan of a city had to be a politically correct and not merely a professionally correct one.

“Heritage and culture is always defined without referring to the human connectivity. Heritage is not found in zones. There should be a sense of belonging for a resident of a heritage city. Even to achieve heritage activism, people in a heritage city should have a sense of belonging. Conservation of heritage is not possible without the participation of people,” he said.

Even heritage tourism could not be seen as a phenomenon in isolation. “We need travellers and visitors for a heritage city rather than tourists,” he said.

‘Consistent approach’

Mukund Padmanabhan, Editor, The Hindu, wished that there was “a greater consistency in how we dealt with the monuments.” “Sometimes there is a furore made about conservation of a building while in other instances there is absolute silence.”

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